Ukrainian soldiers take down Russian drone right above Dutch photographer's head
Dutch photojournalist Daphne Wesdorp was working with the Ukrainian army near Donetsk last week when a Russian drone suddenly appeared above their heads. A soldier barely managed to shoot it down, RTL Nieuws reports.
Video of the incident depicts what happened in the ruins of the eastern Ukrainian city of Kostyantynivka. The 28-year-old photographer was working with Ukrainian soldiers on a report for the Nederlands Dagblad. Footage of the incident was shared by the army.
It showed a soldier shooting the drone down. Another soldier tells Wesdorp that she could take two photos quickly. “After that, we have to leave.” The downing of the drone would tell Russian soldiers their locations, and more drones were sure to follow.
According to Wesdorp, the truly scary moment came after the drone was shot down. “We had to run and hide. At one point, we could hear the drones approaching." The copse of trees they were hiding in didn't provide much cover. "Then army spokesperson Oleg said, ‘Run, now.’”
The group ran and took cover in a house. “The video wasn’t incidental,” Wesdorp said.
“If you go to Kostyantynivka, you expect this. It’s a heavily contested town on the front, with hardly any civilians left. Hundreds of drones fly there.”
She called the drones disastrous for Ukrainian civilians. “Most of the wounded and dead are currently caused by Russian drones.”
Wesdorp is currently back in Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, far away from the front. She sees Ukrainians growing more and more hopeless.
“In Kyiv, I constantly see people without a leg or without an arm. There’s a huge collective trauma - you see it everywhere on the streets.”
The sense of hopelessness is also reflected in developments on the front. The Ukrainian army is increasingly losing control of its territories, according to the broadcaster.
